Wednesday, July 30, 2014

Wed Jul 30th Todays News

A tale of two battles with the White House being against humanity in each. In Gaza, Obama criticises Israeli people for fighting for their lives. In Ukraine, Obama criticises Putin for not ordering Ukrainian separatists to stop fighting for their lives. In each case Obama does not appear competent or realistic, but he is consistent. Ukraine are perpetuating a battle and using artillery to possibly cover up their involvement in shooting down a civilian aircraft. In perpetuating the conflict with international police in the danger zone, a case could be made for war crimes charges being brought to bear on Ukrainian military and government. In keeping with Obama policy in Gaza, if he wants peace in Ukraine, he should release everyone convicted of a sex crime currently incarcerated in the US. It won't work, but it is in line with what he has ordered Israel to do. Today it is the deaths of two martyrs in 1540 which highlights world policy today. Robert Barnes and Thomas Abell were on opposite sides of the religious divide. But they were both executed by Henry VIII keen to be even handed so as to not let his enemies unite. Barnes was a reformer, some might call him a Protestant. He had met Martin Luther and, after having delivered what is now called the first sermon of the English reformation, and having written treatise on religious thought, he was recognised by Wolsey and became an adviser. His advise for Henry to marry Anne of Cleves did not work out well for him. Barnes had made political enemies and after Cleves marriage went south, no one could defend him. And so he was executed. Abell was a committed catholic who applied his faith to support Henry VIII first marriage. He had printed his thoughts in a foreign country under a fake name, but his actions were considered treason, and so he was hung, drawn and quartered. Henry's decision was not based on religion, but was political. But both men had made a stance on faith, and died for it. Today, we see what happens when the foolish take sides and are not even handed. Obama might be sincere in his support for Hamas, and an unrepresentative and murderous Ukraine. But political perceptions change. Also on this day, in 1419, Prague experienced a series of defenestrations of her local councillors. A young woman once asked me if I wished to be defenestrated by her. I had to admit I didn't know. Turns out it means being pushed out of a window. In 1502, Columbus' fourth voyage placed him on an island off Honduras. In 1608 Samuel De Champlain shot and killed two Indian chiefs setting back French relations for a hundred years. In 1619, in Jamestown, the first representative assembly was held in Americas. In 1676, the delightfully named Nathanial Bacon made a declaration that the assembly was not being representative. Later that year he died from dysentery. If only they had listened. In 1733, the first Masonic Grand Lodge opened in the US. In 1866 in New Orleans, the Democrats assaulted an integrated GOP meeting, killing 40 and injuring 150. In 1930, in Montevideo, Uruguay won the first world cup. In 1932, Walt Disney did the first animation in Technicolor. In 1956, Eisenhower approved the monetary motto "In God We Trust" which today still confuses Democrats. In 1971, Apollo 15 use the first moon rover. In 1975. Jimmy Hoffa disappeared for good. ===For twenty two years I have been responsibly addressing an issue, and I cannot carry on. I am petitioning the Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott to remedy my distress. I leave it up to him if he chooses to address the issue. Regardless of your opinion of conservative government, the issue is pressing. Please sign my petition at https://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/tony-abbott-remedy-the-persecution-of-dd-ball

Mr Ball, I will not sign your petition as it will do no good, but I will share your message and ask as many of friends who read it, to share it also. Let us see if we cannot use the power of the internet to spread the word of these infamous killings. As a father and a former soldier, I cannot, could not, justify ignoring this appalling action by the perpetrators, whoever they may; I thank you Douglas. You are wrong about the petition. Signing it is as worthless and meaningless an act as voting. A stand up guy would know that. - edLorraine Allen Hider I signed the petition ages ago David, with pleasure, nobody knows what it's like until they've been there. Keep heart David take care.

I have begun a bulletin board (http://theconservativevoice.freeforums.net) which will allow greater latitude for members to post and interact. It is not subject to FB policy and so greater range is allowed in posts. Also there are private members rooms in which nothing is censored, except abuse. All welcome, registration is free.

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Happy birthday and many happy returns Anders Jørgensen. Born on the same day, across the years, as Maria Anna Mozart (1751), Emily Brontë (1818), Henry Ford (1863), Paul Anka (1941), Arnold Schwarzenegger (1947), Kate Bush (1958), Lisa Kudrow (1963), Markus Näslund (1973), Hilary Swank (1974) and Prince Hridayendra of Nepal (2002). On your day, Independence Day in Vanuatu (1980)762 – Al-Mansur, the Caliph of Islam, founded the city of Baghdad to be the capital of the Islamic empire under the Abbasids.1865 – Off the coast of Crescent City, California, US, the steamship Brother Jonathan, carrying a large shipment of gold coins that would not be retrieved until 1996, struck an uncharted rock and sank, killing 225 people.1916 – German agents caused a major explosion when they sabotaged American ammunition supplies to prevent the materiel from being used by the Allies of World War I.1930 – Uruguay defeated Argentina, 4–2, in front of their home crowd at Estadio Centenario in Montevideo to win the first Football World Cup.2012 – The largest power outage in history occurred across 22 Indian states, affecting over 620 million people, or about 9% of the world's population. Come out of the dark. Stand proudly with Uruguay. Take care not to antagonise German insurgents. Steam home. Hold that bag for dad. You remind me of Reinhardt Sosin with that band name .. he was part of Rasta Wookie ..
Matches

Miranda Devine – Tuesday,July 29,2014 (7:11pm)

IN the ancient Christian city of Mosul in Iraq the terrorist group Islamic State (formerly ISIL) has painted the Arabic letter “N” on doors of houses to signify that a Christian family lives inside and is in store for special treatment.

Miranda Devine – Tuesday,July 29,2014 (7:10pm)

It’s presented as a humanitarian slam dunk, complete with telegenic cancer victims condemned to a life of pain by cruel anti-drug advocates.

Premier Mike Baird and his aptly named deputy Andrew Stoner have given provisional support for legalising the drug for medicinal use, albeit with concerns about safe supply and regulation.

The Greens are behind the push, as is energetic drug liberaliser Dr Alex Wodak, who lurks at the back of press conferences at state parliament.

But no one mentions that the active ingredient of marijuana, THC, is already available on prescription in pill form, Dronabinol, as is the oral whole-leaf cannabis extract, Sativex.

It’s not hard to conclude that the drug lobby is using medical marijuana to play on public sympathy as the first step to decriminalisation of recreational marijuana use.

We are being urged to copy the situation in the United States, where medical marijuana has been legalised in 21 states.

But the Journal of the American Medical Association sounded a warning last month.

Yale University researchers cited “evidence that marijuana exposure is associated with an increased risk of psychotic disorders in vulnerable individuals”, structural brain changes, a decline in IQ, respiratory problems and immune suppression.

They also warn marijuana use will increase, especially among adolescents, as the public assumes the drug is safe because it’s legal.

Marijuana “should be subjected to the same evidence-based review and regulatory oversight as other medications”, not simply approved by opinion polls or politicians, they conclude. Otherwise, we are effectively legalising recreational marijuana use but forcing doctors to act as “gatekeepers”.

Tim Blair – Wednesday,July 30,2014 (7:09pm)

“The row can be traced back to 2008 when [Martin] Hirst posted a photo of himself at Karl Marx’s grave at Highgate cemetery in London,” reports the Guardian, “which he later used as a profile picture on his personal Twitter account.

Tim Blair – Wednesday,July 30,2014 (5:09am)

Not for Lord Mayor Clover Moore and Sydney City Council, however, who have access to all of that cash thanks to inner-city ratepayers – many of whom might be wondering now why they didn’t make a greater effort to vote Moore out when they last had the chance.

Clover Moore and some ribbony crap yesterday

Here’s a tougher challenge for Moore and her crew. Beginning in 2017, when Space Noodle, Big Milk Crate and Stupid Bronze Birds are scheduled to be installed, find someone – anyone – who will honestly say that their visit to Sydney was inspired by these examples of alleged art.

A university journalism professor will keep his job after spending three
months suspended without pay for describing his alleged Twitter trolls
as “stupid as f..k”.
Martin Hirst was accused of bringing Deakin university into disrepute
after right-wing press columnist, Andrew Bolt, posted a series of the
tweets on his blog in the Herald Sun.

The Guardian reporter who wrote those lines has already vastly
minimised Hirst’s offence - I suspect in order to invent my own to an
audience as far-Left as Hirst himself. Hey, she even falsely claims I
am “right-wing”.
Fact is, Hirst was not suspended for merely using the word “f..k”. Here are the Hirst tweets I first posted:

These tweets are astonishingly abusive. They are certainly childish and
betray a strident Leftism that would make conservative students
reluctant to divulge their own political leanings. In all they shame the
university. The next day I posted more Hirst tweets,
asking how Hirst was fulfilling the Deakin mission of “driving the
digital frontier to enable globally connected education for the jobs of
the future and research that makes a difference to the benefit of our
students, our staff and the communities we serve”:

How could the Guardian possibly sum up the offence here as a mere use of “f..k”?
Because, I suspect, it wanted to make this a story about the wicked Bolt oppressing an almost blameless academic:

But after a letter to the university authorities signed by 150 academics
and PhD students, the case was settled on Wednesday and Hirst
reinstated.
The row can be traced back to 2008 when Hirst posted a photo of himself
at Karl Marx’s grave at Highgate cemetery in London, which he later used
as a profile picture on his personal Twitter account.
In April 2014 Daily Telegraph columnist Tim Blair posted the photo on
his blog, describing the photo as “the finest leftie selfie ever taken”.
A Twitter user began mocking Hirst for the photo, and a back-and-forth
between the troll and Hirst ensued, prompting other people to join in.
In his final response to his alleged Twitter trolls, Hirst adopted a
tweet by US actress Kirstie Alley: “… dear stupid as # people who just
like to be stupid, go be stupid with other stupid people.
#stupidfuckcity”
Bolt then intervened, posting the comments along with a quote from
university vice chancellor, Jane den Hollander, which described Deakin
as: “A premier university in driving the digital frontier to enable
globally connected education for the jobs of the future and research
that makes a difference to the benefit of our students, our staff and
the communities we serve.”
The university suspended Hirst without pay for serious misconduct, amid claims he had brought the university into disrepute…
But the case was settled after the supporting letter was sent to den Hollander on Tuesday.
“We can understand your concern at Dr Hirst’s actions and the unwelcome
attention that Mr Bolt’s blog posts brought to Deakin University,” the
letter said. “...We are assured that Dr Hirst has recognised his mistake
in engaging with the offensive and anonymous trolls and indulging in
the same vile language that they employed against him. We are also
pleased to know that Dr Hirst apologised for his actions immediately
that Mr Bolt’s attempt to smear him and the University was brought to
his attention.”
An email also circulated among staff calling on them to sign the letter
in support of Hirst, saying; “It is scandalous that Andrew Bolt and the
Murdoch press should have such control over Deakin university’s hiring
and firing policies.”

I am astonished that so many academics and PhD students could be so deceptive and so paranoid.
First, I did not “smear” Hirst. I merely repeated exactly the tweets he himself had published. The sin was his, not mine.
Second, to claim Hirst was merely “indulging in the same vile language
that [frolls] employed against him” robs him of moral agency, reducing
him to a kind of child who should not be blamed if they copy whatever
foul example is set by other children. Aren’t academics supposed to lead
thought, not follow?
Third, I do not have any “control over Deakin university’s hiring and
firing policies”. Deakin University reacted not to what I wrote but what
Hirst himself wrote. It made its own judgment as to how well he’d
fulfilled his duties and set its own punishment without any suggestion
from me.
I still wonder what value Hirst could offer journalism students. Reading
the letter of support by his Deakin colleagues, I wonder what they
could offer students, too, in any field requiring logic, factual
accuracy, leadership and personal responsibility.
This letter is a disgrace.

WHISTLEBLOWER Kathy Jackson has accused the
royal commission into union corruption of “ambushing” her after it was
revealed that she paid her former husband $50,000 from union members’ money that she had transferred to a personal bank account she controlled…
Earlier, the counsel assisting the royal commission, Jeremy Stoljar SC,
revealed that an investigation of accounts showed Ms Jackson shifted
$50,000 from her union’s accounts in 2009 to a Commonwealth Bank account
she controlled, and 24 hours later made a withdrawal of the same amount
and gave it to her former husband, Jeff Jackson, as a $50,000 bank
cheque.
Ms Jackson, whose current partner is Fair Work Commission deputy
president Michael Lawler, claimed that the $50,000 sum and funds
totalling $284,000 that she transferred to the account between 2004 and
2010 were no longer union members’ money once the money arrived in her
bank account. She said she had a general authorisation from her union’s
branch committee of management to use the funds at her discretion.
Ms Jackson said her former husband, Jeff Jackson, who continued as
secretary of another HSU Victorian branch when the couple separated in
2008, was involved in a union battle with a fellow unionist in 2009, and
she believed the money was used for this purpose.
During evidence to the commission last month, Ms Jackson could not
remember the purpose of the $50,000 withdrawal — but she guessed then
that it could have had something to do with Mr Jackson’s HSU No. 1
branch.

Too many historians have sought to “normalise” Wilhelmine Germany,
ignoring the ideological and cultural pathologies an earlier generation
were prepared to confront. Today—July 28, the 100th anniversary of the
Great War’s eruption—that combination of pious duty and conscienceless
brutality should be kept very much in mind…
Regrettably, more recent discussions of the Great War have tended to
ignore the central role played by this ideology and the earlier
scholarship that explored it. They overlook the powerful grip it had on
the German people and the continuity that existed between it and Nazi
ideology, and they avoid facing the dreadful implications for the world
if a Germany possessed by that ideology had prevailed in the war.
Instead, such histories have tended towards anachronism, projecting
backwards into the past an image of the Second Reich not illuminated by
the barbarism of the Third Reich, but one informed by the apparent
stability and moderation of contemporary Germany. They tend to view the
war on the Western Front as a conflict between comparable regimes, and
not an epoch-defining struggle between political systems and underlying
cultures that were fundamentally divergent and incompatible…
By ignoring the Germanic Ideology and the hold it had on the German
people, recent histories of the Great War gloss over the ideological
causes of the war and the passions that surrounded its outbreak. They
also imply that Hitler and the Nazis were a sui generis product of the
war, conjured up out of an historical and cultural vacuum, and not an
expression of extremely powerful ideological and cultural forces within
German society, which presumably, according to Niall Ferguson’s
scenario, would have just evaporated if the Germans had been allowed to
win the war and get it all out of their system. And they discount the
alternative view, that the Great War was the first explosive martial
expression of the Germanic Ideology, and that Hitler, the Nazis, and the
Third Reich were manifestations of its resurgence less than a
generation later.
Considered in this fashion, the resilience and power of the Germanic
Ideology testify to its deep, almost unquenchable roots in German
history, whilst also confirming its capacity—first demonstrated in the
Great War—to mobilise the German people on a massive scale, later
revealing in the Holocaust and the monstrosities in Eastern Europe the
absolute extremity of its aims and methods as it raced towards its
ultimate Götterdämmerung.

Union pressure led to the reinstatement of a suspended South
Australian government worker who later was charged with molesting at
least seven preschoolers in his care…
[T]he carer, suspended by Families SA last year after a complaint about
his interaction with a female toddler, was reinstated to his role and
given a pay rise after the state’s influential Public Service
Association lobbied the Child Development Department.

GREENS senator Sarah Hanson-Young is to border policy what Eddie the Eagle was to ski jumping — failure doesn’t stop her.
It is extraordinary, however, that someone so rash, wrong and
irresponsible on asylum-seeker issues is the go-to person for many in
the media…
India is the world’s largest democracy seeking to overcome poverty and
extremism through the rule of law, economic liberalism and multicultural
tolerance… Yet this senator suggests that sending Indian asylum-seekers
back to India is akin to returning Iraqis to the sectarian bloodlust of
the Islamic State-controlled badlands.
That this is an insult to India is obvious. That it belittles the
horrors in Iraq and Syria is also clear. But it is so obviously
ill-informed, immature and unhelpful that it is remarkable media
organisations take it seriously. Editors are paid to make judgments and
ensure their journalists provide context. To assign merit to these views
is to mislead the public — more sensible to highlight their silliness,
lest audiences think the media is as unhinged as the senator.

Perhaps it wouldn’t matter so much if this stupidity weren’t so lethal.
The destruction of the Howard Government’s border laws by Labor, with
the Greens cheering it on, resulted in 1200 boat people being lured to
their deaths at sea.
(Thanks to reader John.)

I said this week’s Newspoll seemed to overstate Labor’s lead at 54 to 46 (2PP).
I suspect that even more strongly now, given the latest Essential Poll shows Labor ahead just 51 to 49.
I suspect the truth is around the middle.
(Thanks to reader Mike of NQ.)

Several thousand left-wing activists
gathered in Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square on Saturday evening, calling for an
end to bloodshed in the Gaza Strip and a return to negotiations with the
Palestinians.

Slogans chanted by the protesters included “Stop the war,” “Bring the
soldiers back home” and “Jews and Arabs refuse to be enemies,” Channel 2
reported…
The demonstrations were cut short when Hamas unilaterally ended a
humanitarian truce with Israel and resumed rocket-fire from Gaza.

EARTH’S sixth great extinction event has already begun. Now science is
calling for urgent action to prevent life as we know it going the way of
the dinosaurs…
One third of all life on Earth is now threatened or endangered.

In this same story about a “great extinction event” that “has already begun”, these details:

The journal Science reports more than 320 animal and bird species
alone have vanished since the 1500s. Most other animal populations from
among the more than five million species on our planet have declined by
an average 28 per cent.’’

So 0.0064 per cent of species have vanished (counting animals and birds
only) in the past 600 years. And that’s when colonisers were introducing
foxes, cats, rats and other introduced species to new lands.
Hold that alarm.
This stuff is now published by news.com.au?
(Thanks to many readers, including Leigh and Staggering.)

4 her so she can see how I see her
===Daddy had better be very good to mummy for a long time .. - ed
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===This was my best image from the 2013 short two days of chasing. It was a nice huge shelf cloud over Newcastle, Oklahoma. — at Newcastle Ok.
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===Lower backpain has always stopped me from training harder and running longer distances (I had a bad back injury in 2006 from over-training and it's never quite been the same) It started getting much worse lately which made me realise just how much I couldn't let it hold me back, I simply refuse to let it restrict me. Luckily I came across Rocktape recently and it's helped me train harder without feeling like my spine is gonna pop right out of my damn back. I still can't rely on it though, it only does a bit extra so the rest is still up to me to maintain a strong back and core through conditioning. Special thanks goes to my Mum for taping me up everytime! I learn more and more each day just how powerful the mind is, the only thing truly stopping us are our excuses.‪#‎team9lives‬‪#‎warriortraining‬‪#‎hardenup‬‪#‎shapeyourworld‬
===9 NEWS NOW CHATROOM | It looks like science is confirming what everyone has always known: shame doesn't inspire anyone to lose weight.

A research team in the United States has actually found that overweight people who are discriminated against are two to three times more likely to become obese.

What are your thoughts?Join in the conversation in 9 News NOW at 3pm onChannel 9.

“Well, at the time, it seemed rather serious, and they (Communists in Hollywood) were getting themselves into a position where they could control who did the writing.” John Wayne
===This is what a water bottle looks like before it's expanded using compressed air.
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AUNTY IS A CLOSED, LEFT-WING WORKSHOPDon’t worry about Fairfax, that irrelevant organisation is slowly pulling its own plug. But the ABC is government-funded and its charter is to cater for a range of views.If the ABC was a private enterprise venture it would be insolvent within a week. It has no interest in ratings (as ratings clearly show) but its programming has been excellent and many, butnot enough, enjoy its non-commercial basis.

Those who wish to see the abolition of “Aunty” will be disappointed. Those who wish to see its reformation have reason to be hopeful because it has clearly overstepped the mark of late.

There is no doubting its proclivity for Left-wing bias, but that’s not unusual, all developed nations have their “government” media outlets and all are bereft of a conservative view.

Commercial stations are forced, via advertising, to cater for a broad audience.

The ABC’s annual budget of $1.2 billion in taxpayer funds should rightly be used to appeal to a cross section of its paying supporters.

Of course the ABC doesn’t even aspire to that, and the reason is that it simply doesn’t have to.

SBS’s charter was to cater for the ethnic viewer and that seems to have got lost along the way, except for its addiction to soccer.

SBS has a modicum of commercials and many see the answer to the ABC’s far Left self-indulgence is to convert it to a commercial licence or combine it with SBS. This won’t happen.

As daily newspapers rapidly disintegrate into on-line news services, so too will free-to-air channels eventually succumb to pay TV.

It would be intolerable to further split diminishing advertising dollars available to the free-to-air channels by creating more commercial licences.

So, how can the people’s ABC be reformed? It clearly can’t be allowed to continue as it has been.

It can only be reformed from the top.

Jim Spigelman, the current ABC Chairman, is an ALP appointment and a former Senior Advisor and Principal Private Secretary to Gough Whitlam. He is of the Left.

These sort of blatantly political appointments from either side of politics are damaging Aunty in the long run.

When Abbott is elected he will no doubt make some changes but the effects will be generational as the acolyte appointees of Spigelman are already firmly ensconced in a middle management system that has employed those who choose what we see and those who present it to us.

The ABC is in dire need of jolting back to the centre and if Abbott could he would take the knife to middle management too. But he can't do that.

So, we will need to endure the rabid Left until those changes take effect.

Unfortunately, by the time the ABC behemoth is restored to a political centre it will be time to vote in another Labor Government.

It's time to rid government from our government station.

===Tony AbbottEarlier today I committed the Coalition to providing for the fair indexation of military superannuation pensions.

The Coalition will keep faith with the 57,000 recipients of military superannuation pensions by providing fair indexation.

You can read our policy here: http://lbr.al/defsup
===Caroline GlickBibi - Shame on you!Below is a link to an oped written by Adi Moses, a victim of terror. Her pregnant mother and little brother were murdered. She was critically wounded. And to make Obama and Kerry happy, Bibi decided to release their murderers, along with another 103 murderers. Just to make Obama and Kerry happy.You think they'll bomb Iran now?Bibi, you are a disgrace to your people, and to the memory of your brother. Shame on you.I'm following this post, not 'liking' it. I am reminded of how JFK was paired with a 'partner in peace' with Khrushchev. Khrushchev negotiated with JFK and backed down over the Cuban Missile crisis. Thing was, Khrushchev also negotiated missiles out of Turkey. Not being able to discuss about Turkey, Khrushchev looked weak and was rolled by the monster Breshnev. I don't know why Netanyahu has done what he has done, it cannot have a good excuse. But I know it is Obama's fault and there is none to replace Netanyahu that is better for Israel atm. - ed
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IPA like to excuse their historical preference for the ALP with such empty rhetoric. The fact is that policy influences industry profoundly, and can, as the ALP have demonstrated time and again, wreck a lot. - ed

===Australia should be competitive .. with the qualifiers .. - ed
===This is what a Russian Caucasian Mountain Dog looks like
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When life doesn't make sense, an explanation doesn't ease your pain; the presence of God does.

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===I would hope next time Pope Francis offers to meet with the press, they would take to heart his message about fearless service and report to their readers what he actually said, rather than what they wish they had heard.
===The Monthly but this is a good, non-politically partisan piece.

Essentially, nobody likes being lectured about how racist they are. That quaint notion of national sovereignty, however unfashionable among the inner-city set, still holds sway in many parts of the country.>
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Desert Shadows. This is one of the very first images I ever took with a DSLR back on June 30th, 2006. My brother Randy let me borrow his girlfriends' Canon and get a feel. I was too broke to afford one of my own at the time, and it was absolute torture waiting for the day when I would finally be able to give up the point and click camera I had been using and abusing. I was hooked, but without a quick fix to be seen in the near future. This picture was taken as a desert monsoon storm was forming above us. Soon there would be lightning and high winds. I was in heaven! I continue with my obsession of the DSLR and desert storms to this day. I also get to teach others how to shoot these darned contraptions, which is pretty cool.

In reply to (yet another) example of asking the false question about so-called post-processing, I wrote:

"It is time to stop being defensive about so-called "processing" of photographs. It is simply a bizarre and unsupportable myth that great photographs reflect reality (in fact, every photograph lies!) or are produced simply by making brilliant decisions about what to point that camera at and when. To suggest that great photography comes only from careful capture - without denying the importance of that part of the process - is akin to suggesting that great cooking is purely the result of great farming."

“I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have preserved my life.” Psalm 119:93NIV

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Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon

Morning

"Nevertheless I am continually with thee."Psalm 73:23
"Nevertheless,"--As if, notwithstanding all the foolishness and ignorance which David had just been confessing to God, not one atom the less was it true and certain that David was saved and accepted, and that the blessing of being constantly in God's presence was undoubtedly his. Fully conscious of his own lost estate, and of the deceitfulness and vileness of his nature, yet, by a glorious outburst of faith, he sings "nevertheless I am continually with thee." Believer, you are forced to enter into Asaph's confession and acknowledgment, endeavour in like spirit to say "nevertheless, since I belong to Christ I am continually with God!" By this is meant continually upon his mind, he is always thinking of me for my good. Continually before his eye;--the eye of the Lord never sleepeth, but is perpetually watching over my welfare. Continually in his hand, so that none shall be able to pluck me thence. Continually on his heart, worn there as a memorial, even as the high priest bore the names of the twelve tribes upon his heart forever. Thou always thinkest of me, O God. The bowels of thy love continually yearn towards me. Thou art always making providence work for my good. Thou hast set me as a signet upon thine arm; thy love is strong as death, many waters cannot quench it; neither can the floods drown it. Surprising grace! Thou seest me in Christ, and though in myself abhorred, thou beholdest me as wearing Christ's garments, and washed in his blood, and thus I stand accepted in thy presence. I am thus continually in thy favour--"continually with thee." Here is comfort for the tried and afflicted soul; vexed with the tempest within--look at the calm without. "Nevertheless"--O say it in thy heart, and take the peace it gives. "Nevertheless I am continually with thee."

Evening

"All that the Father giveth me shall come to me."John 6:37
This declaration involves the doctrine of election: there are some whom the Father gave to Christ. It involves the doctrine of effectual calling: these who are given must and shall come; however stoutly they may set themselves against it, yet they shall be brought out of darkness into God's marvellous light. It teaches us the indispensable necessity of faith; for even those who are given to Christ are not saved except they come to Jesus. Even they must come, for there is no other way to heaven but by the door, Christ Jesus. All that the Father gives to our Redeemer must come to him, therefore none can come to heaven except they come to Christ.
Oh! the power and majesty which rest in the words "shall come." He does not say they have power to come, nor they may come if they will, but they "shall come." The Lord Jesus doth by his messengers, his word, and his Spirit, sweetly and graciously compel men to come in that they may eat of his marriage supper; and this he does, not by any violation of the free agency of man, but by the power of his grace. I may exercise power over another man's will, and yet that other man's will may be perfectly free, because the constraint is exercised in a manner accordant with the laws of the human mind. Jehovah Jesus knows how, by irresistible arguments addressed to the understanding, by mighty reasons appealing to the affections, and by the mysterious influence of his Holy Spirit operating upon all the powers and passions of the soul, so to subdue the whole man, that whereas he was once rebellious, he yields cheerfully to his government, subdued by sovereign love. But how shall those be known whom God hath chosen? By this result: that they do willingly and joyfully accept Christ, and come to him with simple and unfeigned faith, resting upon him as all their salvation and all their desire. Reader, have you thus come to Jesus?

Today's Old Testament reading: Psalm 49-50

For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.

1 Hear this, all you peoples;listen, all who live in this world,2 both low and high,rich and poor alike:3 My mouth will speak words of wisdom;the meditation of my heart will give you understanding.4 I will turn my ear to a proverb;with the harp I will expound my riddle:

5 Why should I fear when evil days come,when wicked deceivers surround me--6 those who trust in their wealthand boast of their great riches?

Today's New Testament reading: Romans 1

1 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God-- 2 the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures 3regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, 4 and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. 5 Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name's sake. 6 And you also are among those Gentiles who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

7 To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people:

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ....

[Ē'sôu] - hairy. The eldest son of Isaac and twin brother of Jacob by Rebekah. His name is associated with his appearance at birth (Gen. 25:25).

The Man Who Bartered His Birthright

This cunning hunter and man of the field (Gen. 25:27 ) supplies us with one of the tragic biographies among the men of the Bible. He is prominent in God's portrait gallery as the man rejected of God because he had sold his birthright. Let us briefly sketch what Scripture records of "Esau, who is Edom." Had he retained his birthright we might have read "Esau, who is Israel." The wrong act, however, left a black mark upon his future history.

He was a profane person. What a terrible epitome! It is like a label fastened to Esau as he disappears from Bible history (Heb. 12:16 ). The work "profane" does not mean that he delighted in profanity, but that he was a man of the earth who lived for worldly things and nothing else. With many good qualities, Esau was of the earth, earthy.

He sold his birthright . As the elder son of his father, even although he came from the womb only a half-hour before his twin brother, Jacob, he was entitled by law and custom to receive twice as much as a younger son's portion, and to be regarded in due time as the head of the family. But we all know the story of how, for a mess of pottage, he bartered away his spiritual and temporal rights. The record says that Esau sold his birthright because he "despised" it. How easily some men part with the rich blessings they are heirs to!

His was a fruitless repentance . Esau lifted up his voice and cried, "Bless me, even me also, O my father!" But his repentant prayer was directed, not to God, but to Isaac. In the whole of Genesis Esau does not mention the name of God. Had Esau's repentance been Godward, what a different story we would have had! Esau only repented of his bargain, not ofhis sin. Such a bargain turned out to be a bad one, and he was sorry for it. Further, all Esau sought was restitution, not pardon. He had lost one blessing, and sought another.

Under grace the penitent sinner who has wasted his substance has a Saviour to turn to, and repenting of his sin, finds mercy. Esau, even with his tears, found no mercy. God was not in his thoughts, and he had therefore to abide by the consequences of what he had brought upon himself. Yet he learned his lesson, for Esau called his firstborn Eliphaz, "strength of God," and his second son Reuel, "joy of God."

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About Me

I'm author of History in a Year by the Conservative Voice aka History of the World in a Year by the Conservative Voice.

I'm the Conservative Voice.

I'm looking to make contact with those who might use my skill.

I have an m-audio mobile pre amp fed by the audiotechnica 2041sp condensor mic pack. Prior to 15/4/06, I'd used a Shure sm-58 that required a nuclear blast to register a sound or the internal mic of my aged imac, which has a penchance to recording my breathing. I also used a Griffin itrip, until the community convinced me it was not hiding my talent as well as the other mics.

I am a Writer and an occasional Math Teacher (Sir, what's the occasion?). I like to sing, having no instrumental talent (cannot even clap in time, and yes, I'm aware singing badly IS obnoxious).

I have performed the finale to Les Miserables before an audience of 500. I have also sung before a similar audience (students, parents) renditions of 'I Will' (Beatles), 'Mr Cairo' (Jon Vangelis) and 'I am Australian' (Seekers). Now I seek another profession because the audience hates me ..